Garment with crotch part

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a garment with a crotch part used in contact with skin, including: a garment main body including a stretchable crotch cloth piece; and a second crotch cloth piece on which an absorbent article is to be applied and held, provided on the inner side of the crotch cloth piece of the garment main body, wherein the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garment main body at its front and rear edges and is mounted to the crotch cloth piece of the garment main body at least in one portion of its center line, and right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece are not bonded to the garment main body and are in free state. An absorbent article can be held at a determined position on the crotch part of the garment with stability and security. The garment also is excellent in close contact to the pudendal cleft region, is difficult to be steamed in use, and has fine appearance and good wearing comfort after mounting an absorbent article.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a garment with a crotch part having astructure for holding an absorbent article, such as a sanitary napkin oran incontinence pad, on the crotch part with stability and security.

BACKGROUND ART

Absorbent articles such as a sanitary napkin or an incontinence pad areused widely as sanitary goods for absorbing a body fluid such asmenstrual blood or urine. Taking a sanitary napkin as a representativeexample to be described, various improvements have been added so that itcan be mounted to a garment with a crotch part, such as a short panty,on the crotch part with stability and ease. Recently, as illustrated inFIG. 26, a sanitary napkin in which foldable pieces 202 (hereinafter maybe referred to as wings) are provided on the right and left sides of anapkin body 201 and these foldable pieces 202 have adhesive portions 203covered with separable protection films (not illustrated) is common.

In such a conventional napkin, as illustrated in FIG. 27, the napkinbody 201 is applied onto the inner side of a crotch part 206 of a shortpanty main body 205. While the wings 202 are folded onto the outer sideof the short panty main body 205, the separable protection films areremoved from the adhesive portions 203, and the wings 202 are adhered tothe outer side of the crotch part 206 with the adhesive portions 203.

Thus, the napkin is held on the crotch part 206 of the short panty mainbody 205 with stability and security.

However, in a sanitary garment with a crotch part such as theabove-described conventional sanitary short panty, because the wings 202of the napkin are exposed on the outer side of the short panty main body205, it has poor appearance.

Although a sanitary napkin is described herein as a representativeexample, an incontinence pad or other absorbent article for absorbingurine or other discharged body fluid, other than menstrual blood, whichhas wings just as the napkin shown in FIG. 26, also may be assumed. Withrespect to the case of using such an assumed absorbent article withwings, the same matters are considered. In the following, a case ofusing a sanitary napkin is described as a representative example.

To solve these problems, for example, a sanitary short panty asdescribed in Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3002607 has beenproposed.

In this sanitary short panty, as shown in the perspective view for itsmain parts in FIG. 28, a waterproof cloth 213 is placed on the innerside of a crotch part 212 of a short panty main body 211. Front and rearends 214 and 215 of the waterproof cloth 213, and portions 216 and 217of the right and left sides of the waterproof cloth 213 near the frontand rear ends are sewn to the short panty main body 211. The right andleft edges 218 of the waterproof cloth 213 are not sewn to the shortpanty main body 211 and are in free state. That is, the wings 202 of thenapkin are folded into the gap between the waterproof cloth 213 and thecrotch part 212, where the waterproof cloth 213 is not sewn to the shortpanty main body. These folded wings 202 are adhered to the back side ofthe waterproof cloth 213.

Thus, in a conventional sanitary short panty, by folding the wings 202of the napkin onto the back side of the waterproof cloth 213, the wings202 are prevented from being exposed on the outside of the short pantymain body.

However, such a conventional sanitary short panty does not have astructure to make the mounting of a napkin with wings easy. The gapbetween the crotch part 212 of the short panty main body 211 and thewaterproof cloth 213 is small, and folding of the wings to mount thenapkin is difficult. Furthermore, because the adhesive portions 203 ofthe wings 202 are adhered directly to the back side of the waterproofcloth 213, when changing the napkin or washing the short panty, thenapkin is peeled away from the short panty. When peeling the wings 202of the napkin frequently, the waterproof resin coating on the waterproofcloth 213 also is peeled by the adhesive strength of the adhesiveportions. This causes reduced waterproof property and leaking.Furthermore, close contact of a napkin mounted on the waterproof clothwith respect to the crotch region of the body of the wearer is notconsidered much in a conventional sanitary short panty.

To dissolve these problems, for example, a sanitary short panty asdescribed in Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3047126 has beenproposed.

FIG. 29 is a plan view of a crotch part and its vicinity of theabove-mentioned short panty, viewed from the inside of the short panty.FIG. 30 is an approximate sectional view taken along the line A-A′ ofFIG. 29. FIG. 31 is a detailed sectional view of only a cloth piece 225for holding a sanitary napkin (second crotch cloth piece) of FIGS. 29and 30. The crotch part of the sanitary short panty shown in FIGS. 29 to31 has the following structure.

The sanitary short panty includes a short panty main body, which iscomprised of a front body fabric 222, a rear body fabric 223, and acrotch cloth piece 224 for joining the lower end of the front bodyfabric 222 and the lower end of the rear body fabric 223. A cloth piece225 (a second crotch cloth piece) for holding a napkin (see FIG. 26)applied is mounted on the crotch cloth piece 224, and a stretch tape 226having a smaller width and a slightly shorter length than the secondcrotch cloth piece 225 and the crotch cloth piece 224 is mounted betweenthe second crotch cloth piece 225 and the crotch cloth piece 224 at thecenter in the width direction. As illustrated in FIG. 31, the secondcrotch cloth piece 225 has a three-layer structure consisting of astretchable net cloth 225 e to be in direct contact with the skin, awaterproof cloth 225 f, and a stretchable net cloth 225 g on which theright and left wings 202 of a napkin are to be applied. The entire shapeof the second crotch cloth piece 225 is approximately the same as thatof the crotch cloth piece 224. The stretchable net cloth 225 e to be indirect contact with the skin and the waterproof cloth 225 f areintegrated by adhesion (lamination) in overall. The net cloth 225 e andwaterproof cloth 225 f are integrated with the net cloth 225 g by sewingthem at the whole peripheries thereof.

Thus, by mounting the stretchable net cloth 225 g as a backing cloth forthe waterproof cloth 225 f, direct adhesion of the adhesive portions 203in the right and left wings 202 of the napkin to the waterproof cloth205 f is prevented. According to this structure, when peeling the rightand left wings 202 of the napkin frequently, the waterproof resincoating on the waterproof cloth 225 f is not peeled by the adhesivestrength of the adhesive portions 203, so that reduced waterproofproperty and leaking are not caused.

Furthermore, the rear edge 226 b of the stretch tape 226 is sewn to thelower end of the rear body fabric 223 together with the rear edge 224 bof the crotch cloth piece 224. Right and left edges 225 c and 225 d ofthe second crotch cloth piece 225 are open edges not sewn to the crotchcloth piece 224. Right and left edges 226 c and 226 d of the stretchtape 226 also are open edges not sewn to the crotch cloth piece 224.That is, both the second crotch cloth piece 225 and the stretch tape 226are mounted to the short panty main body only at the front and rearedges 225 a and 225 b or the front and rear edges 226 a and 226 b.

However, in both the sanitary short panty illustrated in FIG. 28 and thesanitary short panty illustrated in FIGS. 29 to 31, it is necessary thata waterproof cloth treated with a liquid-impermeable coating such asresin, like the waterproof cloth 213 or the waterproof cloth 225 f, isused in the crotch part thereof. However, when using a waterproof cloth,it is easy to be steamed and itching or the like is easy to occur, sothat wearing comfort is poor. Use of such a waterproof cloth isnecessary because of the still insufficient fit of a sanitary napkin tothe pudendal cleft region in these sanitary short panties, and when thesanitary napkin deviates from a determined position on the pudendalcleft region by the movement of the wearer, menstrual blood might leakand spoil an outer wear or the like. That is, in both the sanitary shortpanty illustrated in FIG. 28 and the sanitary short panty illustrated inFIGS. 29 to 31, as described above, the right and left edges 218 or theright and left edges 225 c and 225 d of the waterproof cloth 213 or thesecond crotch cloth piece 225 are open edges not sewn to the crotchcloth piece 212 or 224 of the garment main body. That is, the waterproofcloth piece 213 or the second crotch cloth piece 225 is mounted to theshort panty main body at the front and rear edges 214 and 215 or thefront and rear edges 225 a and 225 b thereof The stretch tape 226 of thesanitary short panty illustrated in FIGS. 29 to 31 also is mounted tothe short panty main body at its front and rear edges 226 a and 226 b,but its center portion is not fixed to the short panty main body at all.Thus, the crotch part 212 of the short panty main body 211 and thewaterproof cloth 213 are caused to slide by the movement of the wearereasily, and thereby the sanitary napkin mounted on the waterproof cloth213 might deviate from a determined position. Also, like the above case,relative positions among the crotch cloth piece 224, the second crotchcloth piece 225 and the stretch tape 226 also are shifted by themovement of the wearer easily, and thereby the sanitary napkin mountedon the second crotch cloth piece 225 also deviates from a determinedposition.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The above, and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent from the following description read inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like referencenumerals designate the same elements.

It is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentionedproblems and provide a garment with a crotch part, in which a sanitarynapkin, incontinence pad or other absorbent article is held at adetermined position on the crotch part with stability and security. Thegarment also is excellent in close contact to the pudendal cleft region,is difficult to be steamed in use, and has fine appearance and goodwearing comfort after mounting an absorbent article.

To accomplish the above object, the present invention provides a garmentwith a crotch part as follows:

(1) A garment with a crotch part used in contact with skin, including:

a garment main body including a stretchable crotch cloth piece; and

a second crotch cloth piece on which an absorbent article is to beapplied and held, provided on an inner side of the crotch cloth piece ofthe garment main body,

wherein the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garment mainbody at its front and rear edges and is mounted to the crotch clothpiece of the garment main body at least in one portion of its centerline, and

right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece are not bonded tothe garment main body and are in free state.

(2) A garment with a crotch part used in contact with skin, including:

a garment main body including a stretchable crotch cloth piece; and

a second crotch cloth piece on which an absorbent article is to beapplied and held, provided on an inner side of the crotch cloth piece ofthe garment main body,

wherein the second crotch cloth piece is made of a knitted or wovenfabric having stretchability at least in its longitudinal direction;

a straining force in vicinities of right and left edges of the secondcrotch cloth piece and a straining force in a region along alongitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece are increased;

the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garment main body at itsfront and rear edges and is mounted to the crotch cloth piece of thegarment main body at least in one portion of the center line; and

the right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece are not bondedto the garment main body and are in free state.

(3) The garment according to the above item (2), wherein:

the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garment main body whilestretching right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece havinga shorter length than a determined length; and

a stretch tape is mounted on a back side of the second crotch clothpiece along the longitudinal center line.

(4) The garment according to the above item (2), wherein:

the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garment main body at itsfront and rear edges while stretching right and left edges of the secondcrotch cloth piece having a shorter length than a determined length; and

the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the crotch cloth piece ofthe garment main body in approximately full length of the longitudinalcenter line via a stretch tape on a back side of the second crotch clothpiece.

(5) The garment according to the above item (3) or (4), wherein thestretch tape having a shorter length than a determined length is mountedto the second crotch cloth piece while being stretched.

(6) The garment according to the above item (3) or (4), wherein:

the second crotch cloth piece is formed by joining two cloth pieces onfront and rear sides together by sewing;

a length of a longitudinal center line of each of the two cloth pieceson front and rear sides is approximately the same as a determinedlength,

a length of right and left edges of each of the two cloth pieces onfront and rear sides is shorter than a determined length;

the two cloth pieces on front and rear sides have opposed edges to bejoined, each edge expanding in a convex form; and

the two cloth pieces on front and rear sides are joined by sewing attheir edges expanding in a convex form.

(7) The garment according to any one of the above items (1) to (4),wherein a stretch tape is mounted on the right and left edges of thesecond crotch cloth piece.

(8) The garment according to any one of the above items (2) to (4),wherein

a thickness and/or a knitted or woven density of an elastic fiber yarnin a knitted or woven fabric forming the second crotch cloth piece areincreased in vicinities of the right and left edges or in vicinities ofthe right and left edges and in vicinity of the longitudinal center lineof the second crotch cloth piece, and thereby

a straining force in vicinities of and in directions along the right andleft edges of the second crotch cloth piece, or a straining force invicinities of and in directions along the right and left edges and astraining force in vicinity of and in a direction along the longitudinalcenter line of the second crotch cloth piece are increased further.

(9) The garment according to the above item (2), wherein a length of theright and left edges and a length of the longitudinal center line of thesecond crotch cloth piece are each shorter than a determined length, andthe second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garment main body whilestretching the right and left edges and the center line of the secondcrotch cloth piece.

(10) The garment according to the above item (9), wherein a stretch tapeis mounted on the right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece.

(11) The garment according to the above item (9), wherein

a thickness and/or a knitted or woven density of an elastic fiber yarnin a knitted or woven fabric forming the second crotch cloth piece areincreased in vicinities of the right and left edges or in vicinities ofthe right and left edges and in vicinity of the longitudinal center lineof the second crotch cloth piece, and thereby

a straining force in vicinities of and in directions along the right andleft edges of the second crotch cloth piece, or a straining force invicinities of and in directions along the right and left edges and astraining force in vicinity of and in a direction along the longitudinalcenter line of the second crotch cloth piece are increased further.

(12) The garment according to any one of the above items (1) to (4),wherein both the crotch cloth piece of the garment main body and thesecond crotch cloth piece are made of a woven or knitted fabric that isnot waterproofed.

(13) The garment according to any one of the above items (1) to (4),wherein the second crotch cloth piece is made of a knitted fabricselected from a raschel knitted fabric and a tricot knitted fabric thatare not waterproofed.

(14) The garment according to any one of the above items (2) to (4),wherein a cross section of the second crotch cloth piece in widthdirection when the garment is in use has an approximate W-shape suchthat vicinities of the right and left edges and the longitudinal centerline of the second crotch cloth piece rise toward a body of a wearer.

(15) The garment according to any one of the above items (1) to (4),wherein the absorbent article is a sanitary napkin.

(16) The garment according to any one of the above items (1) to (4),wherein the garment is selected from a short panty, a girdle, a bodysuitand a leotard.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of a short panty as a garment with a crotch partof the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the short panty shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the crotch part and its vicinity of the shortpanty shown in FIG. 1, viewed from the inside of the short panty.

FIG. 4 is an end view of a cross section taken along the line A-A′ ofFIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an end view of a cross section taken along the line A-A′ ofFIG. 3 in a state where a sanitary napkin with wings is mounted to theshort panty shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a front view of another embodiment of a short panty as agarment with a crotch part of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a rear view of the short panty shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a crotch part and its vicinity of the shortpanty shown in FIG. 6, viewed from the inside of the short panty.

FIG. 9 is an end view of a cross section taken along the line A-A′ ofFIG. 8 in a state where a sanitary napkin with wings is mounted to theshort panty shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 10 is an end view of a cross section of still another embodiment ofa short panty as a garment with a crotch part of the present invention,which is cut in a plane perpendicular to the right and left direction atthe center of the short panty.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of still another embodiment of a shortpanty as a garment with a crotch part of the present invention, viewedfrom a side of the short panty.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the short panty shown in FIG. 11 in astate where both edges 5 c and 5 d of the second crotch cloth piece 5are raised upward, viewed from a side of the short panty.

FIG. 13 is a plan view of a crotch part and its vicinity of the shortpanty shown in FIG. 11, viewed from the inside of the short panty.

FIG. 14 is a plan view of an embodiment of a second crotch cloth piece 5before sewing.

FIG. 15 is a plan view of another embodiment of a second crotch clothpiece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 16 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 17 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 18 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 19 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 20 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 21 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 22 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 23 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 24 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 25 is a plan view of still another embodiment of a second crotchcloth piece 5 before sewing.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of an example of a sanitary napkin.

FIG. 27 shows a state where a sanitary napkin is mounted on aconventional sanitary short panty.

FIG. 28 is a perspective view of main parts of another embodiment of aconventional sanitary short panty.

FIG. 29 is a plan view of a crotch part and its vicinity of stillanother embodiment of a conventional sanitary short panty, viewed fromthe inside of the short panty.

FIG. 30 is an approximate sectional view taken along the line A-A′ ofFIG. 29.

FIG. 31 is a sectional view of only a cloth piece 225 for holding asanitary napkin of FIGS. 29 and 30.

DETAILED DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

In the following, specific embodiments of the present invention aredescribed with reference to the accompanying drawings. The presentinvention is not limited only to these specific embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a front view of a short panty as a garment with a crotch partof the present invention; FIG. 2 is a rear view of the short panty shownin FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a plan view of the crotch part and its vicinity ofthe short panty shown in FIG. 1, viewed from the inside of the shortpanty; FIG. 4 is an end view of a cross section taken along the lineA-A′ of FIG. 3; FIG. 5 is an end view of a cross section taken along theline A-A′ of FIG. 3 in a state where a sanitary napkin with wings ismounted to the short panty shown in FIG. 1.

The short panty shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 includes short panty main bodycomprising a front body fabric 2, right and left rear body fabrics 3 aand 3 b, and a stretchable crotch cloth piece 4, which is a crotch partfor joining the lower end of the front body fabric 2 and the lower endsof the rear body fabrics 3 a and 3 b. The numeral 9 indicates a seamline between the rear body fabrics 3 a and 3 b. The crotch cloth piece 4of the short panty main body may be stretchable at least in thelongitudinal direction of the crotch cloth piece 4. In this embodiment,a fabric stretchable in two directions, i.e. in the transverse andlongitudinal directions, was used.

A second crotch cloth piece 5 on which a sanitary napkin with wings (seeFIG. 26) or any of similar incontinence pads and other absorbentarticles with wings (hereinafter, a sanitary napkin with wings isreferred to as a representative example) is to be applied and held isprovided on the inner side of the stretchable crotch cloth piece 4 ofthe short panty main body. The second crotch cloth piece 5 is made of aknitted or woven fabric stretchable at least in its longitudinaldirection. It is designed so that the width of the middle portion in thelongitudinal direction of the second crotch cloth piece 5 is a littlesmaller than that of the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty mainbody. As illustrated in FIG. 5, it is designed so that when a sanitarynapkin with wings is mounted on the second crotch cloth piece 5 byfolding the wings 202 onto the back side of the second crotch clothpiece 5 and adhering the adhesive portions 203 to the back side of thesecond crotch cloth piece 6, the sanitary napkin cannot be seen fromoutside. The second crotch cloth piece 5 is sewn to the short panty mainbody at its front and rear edges 5 a and 5 b. In this example, thesecond crotch cloth piece 5 is sewn to the front body fabric 2 and therear body fabrics 3 a and 3 b together with the front and rear edges 4 aand 4 b of the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body.Moreover, the second crotch cloth piece 5 is sewn to the crotch clothpiece 4 of the garment main body at least in one portion of itslongitudinal center line 10-10′. In this example, the second crotchcloth piece 5 is sewn to the crotch cloth piece 4 in a seam line 7 via astretch tape 6. Thus, right and left edges 5 c and 5 d of the secondcrotch cloth piece 5 are not bonded to the garment main body and kept infree state.

In a more preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is designedso that the straining force in the vicinities of the right and leftedges 5 c and 5 d and the straining force in a region along thelongitudinal center line 10-10′ of the second crotch cloth piece 5 areincreased. The increase in the straining forces means as follows. Whenthe short panty of this embodiment is in use, the second crotch clothpiece 5 is stretched usually in its length direction. Thus, it isdesigned so that the stress when stretching the second crotch clothpiece 5 in the length direction is increased in the vicinities of theright and left edges 5 c and 5 d and in the region along thelongitudinal center line 10-10′.

As a specific method to accomplish this, in the short panty shown inFIGS. 1 to 5, the second crotch cloth piece is made of a cloth piecewhere the length of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter thana determined length. While stretching the right and left edges in thelongitudinal direction, the second crotch cloth piece is sewn to theshort panty main body at its front and rear edges 5 a and 5 b. In aregion along the longitudinal center line 10-10′, a stretch tape 6 ismounted on the back side of the second crotch cloth piece along thelongitudinal center line, and is sewn in a seam line 7. Thus, thestraining force in the region along the longitudinal center line isincreased. In this case, to increase the straining force further, it ismore preferable that the length of the stretch tape 6 is shorter than adetermined length, and the stretch tape is sewn while being stretched tothe determined length. It is also preferable that this region is sewnwith gathers.

The stretch tape may be made of a knitted fabric, a woven fabric, or abraided fabric (such a structure as a braid). There are also variouskinds of stretch tapes, such as one having stretchability with itsstructure, one expressing stretchability with an elastic fiber, and oneexpressing stretchability with a fibrous rubber or the like. There arealso various kinds of stretch tapes different in the stretchability orthe strength of the straining force. In the present invention, thestretch tape may be selected from these as appropriate. In this specificexample of a short panty, a stretch tape with a width of 5 mm and madeof a spandex woven narrow textile including a polyurethane fiber is usedas the stretch tape 6 in the region along the longitudinal center line.Because such a stretch tape made of a spandex woven narrow textile has asmall thickness and a strong straining force, when it is used in theregion along the longitudinal center line, the increase in the thicknessof the region is reduced, and required straining force can be exhibitedwithout causing discomfort. Thus, such a stretch tape is one of thoseextremely preferred. In the following specific examples, when a stretchtape is used in the region along the longitudinal center line, thiswoven textile tape also is one of those particularly preferred.

In this example, the second crotch cloth piece 5 is formed by joiningtwo small cloth pieces 5 x and 5 y on front and rear sides in a seamline 8. FIG. 14 shows a plan view of the two small cloth pieces 5 x and5 y on front and rear sides in a state of the second crotch cloth piece5 before sewing. As is also obvious from this drawing, the total of thelengths a1 and a2 equals to the length of the longitudinal center lineof the second crotch cloth piece 5, and the length of the right and leftedges of the second crotch cloth piece 5 equals to the total of b1 andb2. The total of the lengths b1 and b2 is shorter than a determinedlength of the edges. The small cloth piece 5 x on the front side and thesmall cloth piece 5 y on the rear side have opposed edges 8 a and 8 b tobe joined, each of which expands in a convex form. The opposed edges 8 aand 8 b are sewn to form a seam line, which is the seam line 8 shown inFIG. 3.

As the second crotch cloth piece used in the present invention in whichthe length of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter than adetermined length, the embodiments described with reference to FIGS. 3and 14 above are only examples, and it is not limited to theseembodiments. For example, other various forms such as those shown inFIGS. 15 to 28, which are plan views of the second crotch cloth piece 5before sewing, also may be employed.

The second crotch cloth pieces shown in FIGS. 15 to 17 are differentfrom that shown in FIG. 14 only in the expanded form of the edges 8 aand 8 b, and the methods of sewing or use thereof are the same as thoseof the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 14. Thus, the same partsare indicated by the same signs, and overlapped explanation is omitted.Describing the differences of these second crotch cloth pieces from thesecond crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 14, the crotch cloth piece shownin FIG. 15 is different in that substantial portions of the edges 8 aand 8 b expanding in a convex form are straight line. The crotch clothpiece shown in FIG. 16 is different in that approximately centerportions of the edges 8 a and 8 b expanding in a convex form are instraight line. The crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 17 is different inthat although the center portions of the edges 8 a and 8 b expanding ina convex form are curved, most portions on both sides of the edges arein straight line. All of these are examples of a second crotch clothpiece with edges expanding in a convex form.

These second crotch cloth pieces shown in FIGS. 15 to 17 are formed bysewing opposed edges 8 a and 8 b in the same way as that shown in FIG.14. However, the form shown in FIG. 14 is preferred in that the opposededges 8 a and 8 b are sewn smoothly and thus working efficiency is high.

Next, the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 18 is composed ofright and left small cloth pieces 5s and 5t, which are curved to theright and left sides respectively. It is designed so that the length ofthe right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter than a determinedlength. Opposed edges 8 c and 8 d in a convex form are sewn to form thesecond crotch cloth piece. The second crotch cloth piece is sewn to theshort panty main body while stretching the right and left edges 6 c and5 d to the determined length.

In the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 19, darts 8 e and 8 f areprovided on the right and left sides. Thereby, it is designed so thatthe length of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter than adetermined length. Each of the darts 8 e and 8 f is seamed to form thesecond crotch cloth piece. The second crotch cloth piece is sewn to theshort panty main body while stretching the right and left edges 5 c and5 d.

In the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 20, it is designed sothat the length of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter thana predetermined length. A dart 8 g is provided from the front edgetoward the center, and the dart 8 g is seamed to form the second crotchcloth piece. In the second crotch cloth piece, the length of the frontedge 5 a also is made shorter than a determined length by providing thedart 8 g. The second crotch cloth piece is sewn to the short panty mainbody while stretching the front edge 5 a and the right and left edges 5c and 5 d.

In the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 21, it is designed sothat the length of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter thana determined length. The second crotch cloth piece is sewn to the shortpanty main body while stretching the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d.

In the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 22, although the lengthof the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is equal to a determined length,stretch tapes 11 c and 11 d having a little shorter length than thelength of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d are mounted on the rightand left edges 5 c and 5 d while being stretched to the determinedlength, thereby providing a straining force.

In such a case using stretch tapes on the right and left edges of thesecond crotch cloth piece, as described above, the stretch tapes alsomay be made of a knitted fabric, a woven fabric, or a braided fabric(such a structure as a braid). Furthermore, there are various kinds ofstretch tapes such as one having stretchability with its structure, oneexpressing stretchability using an elastic fiber, and one expressingstretchability using a fibrous rubber or the like. There are alsovarious kinds of stretch tapes different in the stretchability or thestrength of straining force. In the present invention, the stretch tapemay be selected from these as appropriate. In such a case using stretchtapes on the right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece,specifically, a stretch tape in the form of a braid composed of aplurality of (in this case: four) long thin fibrous raw rubbers called“call elastic”, is particularly preferred for the stretch tapes 11 c and11 d. In this example, a stretch tape having a width of 3 mm was used.When using a stretch tape on the right and left edges, these edges maybe in direct contact with the skin at their front and rear ends evenwhen a sanitary napkin is mounted. Therefore, call elastic in the formof a braid, which has good feeling to the skin and is one of thoseextremely preferred, was used as the stretch tape.

Next, in the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 23, it is designedso that the length of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorterthan a determined length. Furthermore, the thickness and/or the knittedor woven density of an elastic fiber yarn in a knitted or woven fabricforming portions 12 c and 12 d in the vicinities of the right and leftedges are increased, and thereby the straining force in the vicinitiesand in the directions along the right and left edges is increasedfurther. This second crotch cloth piece is sewn to the short panty mainbody while stretching the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d. Although notshown in the drawing, as needed, it is also preferable to use a secondcrotch cloth piece of an embodiment in which the thickness and/or theknitted or woven density are increased not only for an elastic fiberyarn in a knitted or woven fabric forming the portions 12 c and 12 d inthe vicinities of the right and left edges, but also for an elasticfiber yarn in a knitted or woven fabric forming a region along thecenter line approximately in parallel with the portions 12 c and 12 d,and thereby the straining force in the vicinity of and in the directionalong the center line is increased further.

The above-described second crotch cloth piece is an embodiment in whichthe straining force in the vicinities of and in the directions along theright and left edges is increased by the above-described method, and thestraining force in the region along the longitudinal center line isincreased by mounting a stretch tape 6 on the back side of the secondcrotch cloth piece and sewing it in a seam line 7.

It is preferable that the stretch tape 6 is used to increase thestraining force in the region along the longitudinal center line of thesecond crotch cloth piece. However, it is not always necessary to usethe stretch tape 6 to increase the straining force in the region alongthe longitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece. Thesecond crotch cloth piece may be designed so that the length of theright and left edges and the length of the longitudinal center line ofthe second crotch cloth piece are each shorter than a determined length,and the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the short panty mainbody while stretching the right and left edges and the center line ofthe cloth piece.

FIGS. 24 and 25 show a few examples of a plan view of a second crotchcloth piece of such an embodiment (a plan view before the second crotchcloth piece is sewn to the short panty).

In the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 24, it is designed sothat the length of its right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter thana determined length, and the length of its longitudinal center line (thedistance between the points 13 a and 13 b) also is shorter than adetermined length. It is sewn to the short panty main body whilestretching the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d and the longitudinalcenter line. Although not shown in the drawing, in this embodiment, asneeded, it is also preferable that the thickness and/or the knitted orwoven density of an elastic fiber yarn in a knitted or woven fabricforming the vicinities of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d or thevicinities of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d and a region alongthe center line (the line connecting the points 13 a and 13 b)approximately in parallel with the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d areincreased, and thereby the straining force in the vicinities of and inthe directions along the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d or thestraining force in the vicinities of and in the directions along theright and left edges 5 c and 5 d and the straining force in the vicinityof and in the direction along the center line are increased further.

In the second crotch cloth piece shown in FIG. 25, it is designed sothat the length of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter thana determined length, and darts 14 a and 14 b are provided from the frontand rear edges toward the center. In this second crotch cloth piece, byseaming each of the darts 14 a and 14 b, a second crotch cloth piecehaving an external form similar to that of the second crotch cloth pieceof FIG. 24 is formed. Accordingly, the length of the longitudinal centerline becomes shorter than a determined length. It is sewn to the shortpanty main body while stretching the right and left edges 5 c and 5 dand the longitudinal center line. Although not shown in the drawing, inthis embodiment, as needed, it is also preferable that the thicknessand/or the knitted or woven density of an elastic fiber yarn in aknitted or woven fabric forming the vicinities of the right and leftedges 5 c and 5 d or the vicinities of the right and left edges 5 c and5 d and a region along the center line approximately in parallel withthe right and left edges 5 c and 5 d are increased, and thereby thestraining force in the vicinities of and in the directions along theright and left edges 5 c and 5 d, or the straining force in thevicinities of and in the directions along the right and left edges 5 cand 5 d and the straining force in the vicinity of and in the directionalong the center line are increased further.

As described above, compared with a conventional short panty of thistype in which a second crotch cloth piece on which a sanitary napkin isto be applied and held is provided on the inner side of the crotch clothpiece of the short panty main body, in the short panty of the presentinvention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 5, the crotch cloth piece 4 of theshort panty main body and the second crotch cloth piece 5 are not causedto slide by the movement of the wearer of the short panty. This isbecause the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the crotch clothpiece of the garment main body at least in one portion of the centerline (in this embodiment, full length of the center line of the secondcrotch cloth piece). Thus, a sanitary napkin can be held at a determinedposition with stability and security. Particularly, in the second crotchcloth piece, the straining force in the vicinities of the right and leftedges and the straining force in a region along the longitudinal centerline are increased. As a result, when a sanitary napkin with wings ismounted to the short panty and this short panty is put on by a wearer,as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the shape of a cross section of thesecond crotch cloth piece in the width direction is an approximateW-shape such that the vicinities of the right and left edges and theregion along the longitudinal center line rise toward the body of thewearer. Thus, while the region along the longitudinal center line is inclose contact with the pudendal cleft region, the vicinities of theright and left edges at the peripheries thereof also are in closecontact with the skin of the wearer, so that leaking of menstrual bloodcan be prevented completely. Thus, waterproofing such as resin coatingis not particularly required for both the crotch cloth piece of theshort panty main body and the second crotch cloth piece. Therefore, asanitary garment with a crotch part that is difficult to be steamed inuse, does not cause itching or the like, and has good wearing comfortcan be provided. Moreover, because the right and left edges 5 c and 5 dof the second crotch cloth piece are not bonded to the short panty mainbody and are in free state, when a sanitary napkin with wings is placedon the second crotch cloth piece 5, and mounted by folding the wings 202onto the back side of the second crotch cloth piece 5 between the crotchcloth piece of the short panty main body and the second crotch clothpiece 5 and adhering the adhesive portions 203 to the back side of thesecond crotch cloth piece 5, the sanitary napkin cannot be seen fromoutside. Thus, a garment with a crotch part having fine appearance aftermounting a sanitary napkin can be provided.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention in which thestraining force in the vicinities of the right and left edges and thestraining force in a region along the longitudinal center line of thesecond crotch cloth piece are increased, the straining force in thevicinities of the right and left edges and the straining force in theregion along the longitudinal center line may be the same, or either oneof them may be stronger than the other. It is particularly preferablethat the straining force in the region along the longitudinal centerline is a little stronger than the straining force in the right and leftedges, so that the fit (close contact) of an absorbent article such as asanitary napkin to the body of the wearer is improved, and leaking of abody fluid such as menstrual blood can be prevented sufficiently. As asecond preferred embodiment, the straining force in the vicinities ofthe right and left edges and the straining force in the region along thelongitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece are the same.When the straining force in the vicinities of the right and left edgesand the straining force in the region along the longitudinal center lineare extremely different, it is likely that the shape of a cross sectionof the second crotch cloth piece in the width direction in use isdifficult to be an approximate W-shape such that the portions in thevicinities of the right and left edges and the region along thelongitudinal center line rise toward the body of the wearer. It is alsolikely that the fit (close contact) of an absorbent article such as asanitary napkin to the body of a wearer is decreased, and also wearingcomfort is reduced. These are also the same in other embodiments.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 6 to 9, another embodiment of a shortpanty as a garment with a crotch part of the present invention isdescribed. FIG. 6 is a front view of another embodiment of a short pantyas a garment with a crotch part of the present invention; FIG. 7 is arear view of the short panty shown in FIG. 6; FIG. 8 is a plan view of acrotch part and its vicinity of the short panty shown in FIG. 6, viewedfrom the inside of the short panty; and FIG. 9 is an end view of a crosssection taken along the line A-A′ of FIG. 8 in a state where a sanitarynapkin with wings is mounted to the short panty shown in FIG. 6.

The short panty shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 is different from the short pantyshown in FIGS. 1 to 5 mainly in that it does not have the stretch tape 6mounted to the short panty shown in FIGS. 1 to 5. Instead, the shortpanty shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 uses such a second crotch cloth piece 5 asshown in FIG. 24, in which the right and left edges and the longitudinalcenter line of the second crotch cloth piece 5 are shorter thandetermined lengths, and the right and left edges and the center line ofthe cloth piece are stretched when mounting the second crotch clothpiece 5 to the short panty main body, so as to increase the strainingforce in the region along the longitudinal center line 10-10′ of thesecond crotch cloth piece.

The short panty shown in FIGS. 6 to 9 includes a short panty main bodycomprising a front body fabric 2, right and left rear body fabrics 3 aand 3 b, and a stretchable crotch cloth piece 4, which is a crotch partfor joining the lower end of the front body fabric 2 and the lower endsof the rear body fabrics 3 a and 3 b. Numeral 9 indicates a seam linebetween the rear body fabrics 3 a and 3 b. The crotch cloth piece 4 ofthe short panty main body is stretchable at least in the longitudinaldirection of the crotch cloth piece 4. In this embodiment, a fabricstretchable in two directions, i.e. in the longitudinal and transversedirections, was used.

On the inner side of the stretchable crotch cloth piece 4 of the shortpanty main body, a second crotch cloth piece 5 on which a sanitarynapkin with wings (see FIG. 26) is to be applied and held is provided.The second crotch cloth piece 5 is made of a knitted or woven fabricstretchable at least in its longitudinal direction. The second crotchcloth piece 5 is designed so that the width of its middle portion in thelongitudinal direction is a little smaller than that of the crotch clothpiece 4 of the short panty main body. As illustrated in FIG. 9, it isdesigned so that when a sanitary napkin with wings is mounted by foldingthe wings 202 onto the back side of the second crotch cloth piece 5 andadhering the adhesive portions 203 to the back side of the second crotchcloth piece 5, the sanitary napkin cannot be seen from outside. Thesecond crotch cloth piece 5 is sewn to the short panty main body at itsfront and rear edges 5 a and 5 b. In this example, the second crotchcloth piece 5 is sewn to the front body fabric 2 and the rear bodyfabrics 3 a and 3 b together with the front and rear edges 4 a and 4 bof the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body. Moreover, thesecond crotch cloth piece 5 is sewn to the crotch cloth piece 4 of thegarment main body at least in one portion of the longitudinal centerline 10-10′. In this example, unlike the case of the short pantyillustrated in FIGS. 1 to 5, the second crotch cloth piece 5 is sewn tothe crotch cloth piece 4 in a seam line 7 without having a stretch tapebetween them. Thus, right and left edges 5 c and 5 d of the secondcrotch cloth piece 5 are not bonded to the garment main body and are infree state.

In a more preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is designedso that the straining force in the vicinities of the right and leftedges 5 c and 5 d and the straining force in the region along thelongitudinal center line 10-10′ of the second crotch cloth piece areincreased.

As a specific method, in the short panty shown in FIGS. 6 to 9, a secondcrotch cloth piece as illustrated in FIG. 24, in which the length of theright and left edges 5 c and 5 d is shorter than a determined length andthe length of the longitudinal center line (the distance between thepoints 13 a and 13 b) also is shorter than a determined length, is used.And the second crotch cloth piece is sewn to the short panty main bodyat its front and rear edges 5 a and 5 b while stretching the right andleft edges 5 c and 5 d and the longitudinal center line of the secondcrotch cloth piece in the longitudinal direction. According to thismethod, the straining force at the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d andthe straining force in the region along the longitudinal central line10-10′ of the second crotch cloth piece also can be increased.

In this example, although the embodiment shown in FIG. 24 is used as thesecond crotch cloth piece 5, it is not particularly limited to this. Theembodiment shown in FIG. 25, or although not shown, any other secondcrotch cloth piece in which the right and left edges and thelongitudinal center line thereof are shorter than determined lengths andwhich is mounted to the short panty main body while stretching the rightand left edges and the center line may be employed. Furthermore, asdescribed in the detailed description of the second crotch cloth pieceof FIG. 24, it is also preferable to use a second crotch cloth piece inwhich the thickness and/or knitted or woven density of an elastic fiberyarn in a knitted or woven fabric forming the second crotch cloth piecein the vicinities of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d or in thevicinities of the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d and in a region alongthe center line (the line connecting the points 13 a and 13 b)approximately in parallel with the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d areincreased, and thereby the straining force in the vicinities of and inthe directions along the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d, or thestraining force in the vicinities of and in the directions along theright and left edges 5 c and 5 d and the straining force in the vicinityof and in the direction along the center line are increased further.

As described above, com pared with a conventional short panty of thistype in which a second crotch cloth piece, on which a sanitary napkin isto be applied and held, is provided on the inner surface of the crotchcloth piece of the short panty main body, in the short panty of thepresent invention illustrated in FIGS. 6 to 9, the crotch cloth piece 4of the short panty main body and the second crotch cloth piece 5 are notcaused to slide by the movement of the wearer of the short panty. Thisis because the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the crotch clothpiece of the garment main body at least in one portion of the centerline (in this embodiment, full length of the center line of the secondcrotch cloth piece). Thus, a sanitary napkin can be held at a determinedposition with stability and security.

Furthermore, in the second crotch cloth piece, the straining force inthe vicinities of the right and left edges and the straining force inthe region along the longitudinal center line are increased. As aresult, when a sanitary napkin with wings is mounted to the short pantyand this short panty is put on by a wearer, as illustrated in FIG. 9,the shape of the cross section of the second crotch cloth piece in thewidth direction is an approximate W-shape such that the vicinities ofthe right and left edges and the region along the longitudinal centerline rise toward the body of the wearer. Thus, while the longitudinalcenter line is in close contact with the pudendal cleft region, thevicinities of the right and left edges at the peripheries thereof alsoare in close contact with the skin of the wearer, so that leaking ofmenstrual blood can be prevented completely. Thus, waterproofing such asresin coating is not particularly required for both the crotch clothpiece of the short panty main body and the second crotch cloth piece.Therefore, a sanitary garment with a crotch part that is difficult to besteamed in use, does not cause itching or the like, and has good wearingcomfort can be provided. Moreover, because the right and left edges 5 cand 5 d of the second crotch cloth piece are not bonded to the shortpanty main body and are in free state, when a sanitary napkin with wingsis placed on the second crotch cloth piece 5, and mounted by foldingwings 202 onto the back side of the second crotch cloth piece 5 betweenthe crotch cloth piece of the short panty main body and the secondcrotch cloth piece 5 and adhering adhesive portions 203 to the back sideof the second crotch cloth piece 5, the sanitary napkin cannot be seenfrom outside. Thus, a garment with a crotch part having fine appearanceafter mounting a sanitary napkin can be provided.

Next, FIG. 10 shows an end view of a cross section of still anotherembodiment 6 f a short panty as a garment with a crotch part of thepresent invention, which is cut in a plane perpendicular to the rightand left direction at the center of the short panty. In the shortpanties shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 and FIGS. 6 to 9, the length of the crotchcloth piece 4 of the short panty main body and the length of the secondcrotch cloth piece 5 are the same when mounted to the short panty. Thatis, the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body and the secondcrotch cloth piece 5 are sewn to the front body fabric 2 and the rearbody fabrics 3 a and 3 b together at positions such that the front andrear edges 4 a and 4 b of the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short pantymain body overlap with the front and rear edges 5 a and 5 b of thesecond crotch cloth piece 5. However, it is not necessary that thelength of the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body and thelength of the second crotch cloth piece 5 are the same. For example, asneeded, the second crotch cloth piece 5 may be longer than the crotchcloth piece 4 of the short panty main body. Accordingly, the effect ofpreventing the leaking of menstrual blood may be more complete.

The short panty of the embodiment shown in FIG. 10 is one example inwhich the second crotch cloth piece 5 is longer than the crotch clothpiece 4 of the short panty main body. In the short panty shown in FIG.10, numerals 2 and 3 respectively indicate front and rear body fabricsof the short panty main body; numeral 4 indicates a crotch cloth pieceof the short panty main body; 4 a and 4 b indicate front and rear edgesof the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body; numeral 5indicates a second crotch cloth piece; 5 a and 5 b indicate front andrear edges of the second crotch cloth piece 5; and numeral 6 indicates astretch tape. Because the functions and the methods of sewing of theseparts are the same as in the case illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 5,explanation thereof is omitted.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 10, the second crotch cloth piece 5 islonger than the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body. Inthis case, the second crotch cloth piece 5 extends farther to the rearside. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the stretch tape 6, which extendsalong the longitudinal center line, also extends not only between thefront and rear edges 5 a and 5 b of the second crotch cloth piece 5, butalso further along the rear center line of the rear body fabric to reachthe rear waist. The embodiment in which the second crotch cloth piece 5is longer than the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body isnot limited to that shown in FIG. 10. For example, a second crotch clothpiece extending beyond both of the front and rear edges 4 a and 4 b ofthe crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body farther to thefront and rear sides may be employed. In such an embodiment in which thesecond crotch cloth piece 5 is longer than the crotch cloth piece 4 ofthe short panty main body, as long as the mounting of a sanitary napkinis not hindered, a portion of the free right and left edges of thesecond crotch cloth piece 5 (corresponding to the edges 5 c and 5 d inFIG. 3) may be sewn to the short panty main body. For example, in suchan embodiment as in FIG. 10, the right and left edges of the secondcrotch cloth piece 5 may be sewn to the short panty main body in theregion between 5 b and 4 b, where the second crotch cloth piece 5extends beyond the crotch cloth piece 4 of the short panty main body.

Furthermore, when using a stretch tape 6 along the longitudinal centerline, as shown in FIG. 10, an embodiment in which the stretch tape 6extends not only between the front and rear edges 5 a and 5 b of thesecond crotch cloth piece 5, but also further along the rear center lineof the rear body fabric to reach the rear waist is also favorable tofurther improve the close contact of a sanitary napkin to the pudendalcleft region.

Next, FIGS. 11 and 12 show perspective views of still another embodimentof a short panty as a garment with a crotch part of the presentinvention, viewed from a side of the short panty. The short panty shownin FIG. 11 is the same as that shown in FIG. 12, however, FIG. 12 showsa state where the edges 5 c and 5 d of the second crotch cloth piece 5are raised upward to show that the edges 5 c and 5 d are not bonded tothe short panty main body and are in free state. FIG. 13 is a plan viewof a crotch part and its vicinity of the short panty shown in FIG. 11,viewed from the inside of the short panty.

The short panty shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 is very similar to that shown inFIGS. 1 to 5. However, just as the short panty shown in FIG. 10, theshort panty shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 is an embodiment in which a stretchtape 6 extends not only between the front and rear edges of the secondcrotch cloth piece 5, but also further along the rear center line of therear body fabric to reach the rear waist. In an embodiment using astretch tape 6 along the longitudinal center line in this way, anembodiment in which a stretch tape 6 extends not only between the frontand rear edges of the second crotch cloth piece 5, but also furtheralong the rear center line of the rear body fabric to reach the rearwaist is favorable to further improve the close contact of a sanitarynapkin to the pudendal cleft region. Furthermore, the second crotchcloth piece 5 used in the short panty shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 is of atype different from that of the short panty shown in FIGS. 1 to 5. Inthe short panty shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, the second crotch cloth pieceillustrated in FIG. 23 is used as the second crotch cloth piece 5.However, it goes without saying that a second crotch cloth piece 5 inthe form as illustrated FIG. 14, which is the same as that of the shortpanty shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, or in other form also may be used. Becauseother points are approximately the same as those of the short pantyshown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the same parts are indicated by the same signs,and overlapped explanation is omitted.

In the above-described short panty shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, just as theshort panty shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, compared with a conventional shortpanty of this type in which a second crotch cloth piece on which asanitary napkin is to be applied and held is provided on the inner sideof the crotch cloth piece of the short panty main body, the crotch clothpiece 4 of the short panty main body and the second crotch cloth piece 5are not caused to slide by the movement of the wearer of the shortpanty. This is because the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to thecrotch cloth piece of the garment main body at least in one portion ofthe center line (in this embodiment, the full length of the center lineof the second crotch cloth piece). Thus, a sanitary napkin can be heldat a determined position with stability and security. Furthermore,particularly, in the second crotch cloth piece, the straining force inthe vicinities of the right and left edges and the straining force inthe region along the longitudinal center line are increased. As aresult, when a sanitary napkin with wings is mounted to the short pantyand the short panty is put on by a wearer, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5,the shape of a cross section of the second crotch cloth piece in thewidth direction is an approximate W-shape such that the vicinities ofthe right and left edges and the region along the longitudinal centerline rise toward to the body of the wearer. Thus, while the longitudinalcenter line is in close contact with the pudendal cleft region, thevicinities of the right and left edges at the peripheries thereof alsoare in close contact with the skin of the wearer, so that the leaking ofmenstrual blood can be prevented completely. Moreover, because thestretch tape 6 extends not only between the front and rear edges of thesecond crotch cloth piece 5, but also further along the rear center lineof the rear body fabric to reach the rear waist, the close contact of asanitary napkin to the pudendal cleft region can be improved further.Thus, waterproofing such as resin coating is not particularly requiredfor both the crotch cloth piece of the short panty main body and thesecond crotch cloth piece. Therefore, a sanitary garment with a crotchpart that is difficult to be steamed in use, does not cause itching orthe like, and has good wearing comfort can be provided. Moreover,because the right and left edges 5 c and 5 d of the second crotch clothpiece are not bonded to the short panty main body and are in free state,when a sanitary napkin with wings is placed on the second crotch clothpiece 5, and mounted by folding wings 202 onto the back side of thesecond crotch cloth piece 5 between the crotch cloth piece of the shortpanty main body and the second crotch cloth piece 5 and adheringadhesive portions 203 to the back side of the second crotch cloth piece5, the sanitary napkin cannot be seen from outside. Thus, a garment witha crotch part having fine appearance after mounting a sanitary napkincan be provided.

In the above, as representative examples of a garment with a crotchpart, short panties comprising one front body fabric and two right andleft rear body fabrics have been described with reference to FIGS. 1 to5, FIGS. 6 to 9, and FIGS. 11 to 12. However, because the characteristicof the present invention exists in the structure of the crotch part, itis without saying that the designs of the shape, structure and the likeof the garment main body other than the crotch part are not limited tothe above-illustrated embodiments. As long as the object of the presentinvention can be attained, other shape, structure or design also may beemployed.

Although short panties have been described as representative examples ofa garment with a crotch part, the structure of the crotch part describedin the present invention may apply to various kinds of garments with acrotch part used by a wearer in close contact with the skin, such asgirdles, bodysuits, leotards and the like. In a short type girdle, forexample, although the external form of the garment main body is more orless different from that of a short panty, the above-described structureof a crotch part can be used in almost the same way as in a short panty.Furthermore, in a long type girdle, because it is in a form in which legsections for covering a part of each thigh are added to theabove-described short type girdle, the above-described structure of acrotch part also can be used. Moreover, in a long type girdle, thecrotch part may have two layers, and it is preferable that a crosssection of the crotch part in the width direction can be in anapproximate W-shape, and an absorbent article such as a sanitary napkinwith wings can be mounted easily. A bodysuit is basically in a form inwhich an upper body section up to breast cups is added to a short panty,and the above-described structure of a crotch part can be used in thesame way as in a short panty. A leotard is a garment in almost the sameform as that of a bodysuit, or a garment in a form in which leg sectionsfor covering a part of each thigh are added to a bodysuit, or a garmentin a form in which sleeves for covering at least a part of each arm areprovided, and the above-described structure of a crotch part can be usedin the same way as in a bodysuit.

In the above-described various embodiments, although the second crotchcloth piece is sewn to the crotch cloth piece of the garment main bodyin full length of the center line, this is not always necessary. As longas the object of the present invention is not hindered, the secondcrotch cloth piece may be sewn to the crotch cloth piece of the garmentmain body in a portion of the center line. Furthermore, although notparticularly limited, in an embodiment using a stretch tape, it ispreferable that the width of the stretch tape is from about 3 mm toabout 10 mm.

The fabric for the crotch cloth piece of the garment main body or thesecond crotch cloth piece is not particularly limited as long as it hasstretchability as described above. Because a general stretchable fabricthat is not subjected to a treatment with a waterproof resin or thelike, i.e. a treatment for producing a waterproof cloth or the like, toprevent liquid leaking may be used, compared with a conventionalsanitary short panty using a waterproof cloth or the like, a garmentwith a crotch part having much better ventilation, which is difficult tobe steamed and thus has good wearing comfort, can be provided.

Specifically, for example, raschel knitted fabrics such as triconet,two-way stretch power net, satin-like power net, mesh-like power net andthe like, which are not waterproofed, and tricot knitted fabrics such astwo-way stretch tricot, half tricot, double tricot and the like, whichare not waterproofed, are suitable. Although not particularly limited,it is particularly preferable that, for example, a satin-like power netwith a little rough stitch is used as the second crotch cloth piece. Asatin-like power net is preferred in that the wings of a sanitary napkinor the like are easy to adhere. In addition, an adhesive is hard toremain on the surface of the fabric when the wings are peeled, and thewings are easy to peel off. Also, ventilation is excellent. When givingmore importance to ventilation, mesh-like power net also is one of thepreferred materials.

On the other hand, comparing with the case of using a waterproof cloth,with respect to the fabric itself, the ventilation resistance (KPa·s/m)can be reduced to not more than one thousandth easily, and a materialwith a water-vapor permeability (g/m²/h) of at least two-fold can beused. It goes without saying that the crotch cloth piece of the garmentmain body or the second crotch cloth piece may be subjected to anappropriate treatment such as water-repellent treatment, as long as itis not waterproofing and does not inhibit ventilation so deadly.

Although mounting of a sanitary napkin has been described as arepresentative example, an incontinence pad and other absorbent articlewith wings like the napkin shown in FIG. 26 also may be considered. Whenusing such an assumed incontinence pad or other absorbent article withwings, a garment with a crotch part of the present invention also can beemployed effectively.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

In a garment with a crotch part used in contact with the skin of thepresent invention, because the second crotch cloth piece is mounted tothe crotch cloth piece of the garment main body at least in one portionof the center line, the crotch cloth piece of the garment main body andthe second crotch cloth piece are not caused to slide by the movement ofthe wearer when the garment is in use. Therefore, an absorbent articlesuch as a sanitary napkin with wings can be held at a determinedposition with stability and security. Furthermore, by using a preferredembodiment in which the straining force in the vicinities of the rightand left edges and the straining force in the region along thelongitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece are increased,when a garment of the present invention to which an absorbent articlesuch as a sanitary napkin with wings is mounted is in use, the shape ofa cross section of the second crotch cloth piece in the width directionis an approximate W-shape such that the vicinities of the right and leftedges and the region along the longitudinal center line rise toward thebody of the wearer. Thus, while the region along the longitudinal centerline is in close contact with the pudendal cleft region, the vicinitiesof the right and left edges at the peripheries thereof also are in closecontact with the skin of the wearer, so that leaking of menstrual blood,urine or other discharged body fluid can be prevented completely. Thus,waterproofing such as resin coating is not particularly required forboth of the crotch cloth piece of the garment main body and the secondcrotch cloth piece. Therefore, a sanitary garment with a crotch partthat is difficult to be steamed in use, does not cause itching or thelike, and has good wearing comfort can be provided. Moreover, becausethe right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece are not bondedto the garment main body and are in free state, when an absorbentarticle such as a sanitary napkin with wings is placed on the secondcrotch cloth piece, and the absorbent article is mounted by folding thewings onto the back side of the second crotch cloth piece between thecrotch cloth piece of the garment main body and the second crotch clothpiece and adhering adhesive portions of the wings to the back side ofthe second crotch cloth piece, the absorbent article cannot be seen fromoutside. Thus, a garment with a crotch part having fine appearance aftermounting an absorbent article can be provided. Therefore, the garment ofthe present invention can be used suitably for a garment with a crotchpart used in contact with the skin, such as a short panty, girdle, abodysuit, a leotard or the like, on which an absorbent article such as asanitary napkin is mounted.

Having described preferred embodiments of the invention with referenceto the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the inventionis not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various changesand modifications may be effected therein by one skilled in the artwithout departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as definedin the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A garment with a crotch part used in contact withskin, comprising: a garment main body comprising a stretchable crotchcloth piece; and a second crotch cloth piece on which an absorbentarticle is to be applied and held, provided on an inner side of thecrotch cloth piece of the garment main body, wherein the second crotchcloth piece is mounted to the garment main body at its front and rearedges and further in a region other than the front and rear edges, thesecond crotch cloth piece is mounted to the crotch cloth piece of thegarment main body at least in one portion of its center line, and rightand left edges of the second crotch cloth piece are not bonded to thegarment main body and are in free state.
 2. The garment according toclaim 1, wherein a stretch tape is mounted on the right and left edgesof the second crotch cloth piece.
 3. The garment according to claim 1,wherein both the crotch cloth piece of the garment main body and thesecond crotch cloth piece are made of a woven or knitted fabric that isnot waterproofed.
 4. The garment according to claim 1, wherein thesecond crotch cloth piece is made of a knitted fabric selected from araschel knitted fabric and a tricot knitted fabric that are notwaterproofed.
 5. The garment according to claim 1, wherein the absorbentarticle is a sanitary napkin.
 6. The garment according to claim 1,wherein the garment is selected from the group consisting of a shortpanty, a girdle, a bodysuit and a leotard.
 7. The garment according toclaim 1, wherein the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garmentmain body at its front and rear edges, and also is mounted to the crotchcloth piece of the garment main body along the full length of its centerline.
 8. A garment with a crotch part used in contact with skin,comprising: a garment main body comprising a stretchable crotch clothpiece; and a second crotch cloth piece on which an absorbent article isto be applied and held; provided on an inner side of the crotch clothpiece of the garment main body, wherein the second crotch cloth piece ismade of a knitted or woven fabric having stretchability at least in itslongitudinal direction; a straining force in vicinities of right andleft edges of the second crotch cloth piece and a straining force in aregion along a longitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth pieceare increased; the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garmentmain body at its front and rear edges and further in a region other thanthe front and rear edges, the second crotch cloth piece is mounted tothe crotch cloth piece of the garment main body at least in one portionof its center line, and right and left edges of the second crotch clothpiece are not bonded to the garment main body and are in free state. 9.The garment according to claim 8, wherein: the right and left edges ofthe second crotch cloth piece have a length shorter than a determinedlength; the second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the garment mainbody while stretching the right and left edges of the second crotchcloth piece; and a stretch tape is mounted on a back side of the secondcrotch cloth piece along the longitudinal center line.
 10. The garmentaccording to claim 9, wherein the stretch tape having a shorter lengththan a determined length is mounted to the second crotch cloth piecewhile being stretched.
 11. The garment according to claim 9, wherein:the second crotch cloth piece is formed by joining two cloth pieces onfront and rear sides together by sewing; a length of a longitudinalcenter line of each of the two cloth pieces on front and rear sides isapproximately the same as a determined length; a length of right andleft edges of each of the two cloth pieces on front and rear sides isshorter than a determined length; the two cloth pieces on front and rearsides have opposed edges to be joined, each edge expanding in a convexform; and the two cloth pieces on front and rear sides are joined bysewing at their edges expanding in a convex form.
 12. The garmentaccording to claim 9, wherein a stretch tape is mounted on the right andleft edges of the second crotch cloth piece.
 13. The garment accordingto claim 9, wherein: at least one of a thickness and a knitted or wovendensity of an elastic fiber yarn in a knitted or woven fabric formingthe second crotch cloth piece are increased in vicinities of the rightand left edges or in vicinities of right and left edges and in vicinityof the longitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece andthereby a straining force in vicinities of and in directions along theright and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece, or a strainingforce in vicinities of and in directions along the right and left edgesand a straining force in vicinity of and in a direction along thelongitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece are increasedfurther.
 14. The garment according to claim 9, wherein both the crotchcloth piece of the garment main body and the second crotch cloth pieceare made of a woven or knitted fabric that is not waterproofed.
 15. Thegarment according to claim 9, wherein the second crotch cloth piece ismade of a knitted fabric selected from a raschel knitted fabric and atricot knitted fabric that are not waterproofed.
 16. The garmentaccording to claim 8, wherein a cross section of the second crotch clothpiece in width direction when the garment is in use has an approximateW-shape such that vicinities of the right and left edges and thelongitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece rise toward abody of a wearer.
 17. The garment according to claim 9, wherein a crosssection of the second crotch cloth piece in width direction when thegarment is in use has an approximate W-shape such that vicinities of theright and left edges and the longitudinal center line of the secondcrotch cloth piece rise toward a body of a wearer.
 18. The garmentaccording to claim 9, wherein the absorbent article is a sanitarynapkin.
 19. The garment according to claim 9, wherein the garment isselected from the group consisting of a short panty, a girdle, abodysuit and a leotard.
 20. The garment according to claim 8, wherein:the right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece have a lengthshorter than a determined length; the second crotch cloth piece ismounted to the garment main body at its front and rear edges whilestretching right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece; andthe second crotch cloth piece is mounted to the crotch cloth piece ofthe garment main body in approximately full length of the longitudinalcenter line via a stretch tape on a back side of the second crotch clothpiece.
 21. The garment according to claim 20, wherein the stretch tapehaving a shorter length than a determined length is mounted to thesecond crotch cloth piece while being stretched.
 22. The garmentaccording to claim 20, wherein: the second crotch cloth piece is formedby joining two cloth pieces on front and rear sides together by sewing;a length of a longitudinal center line of each of the two cloth pieceson front and rear sides is approximately the same as a determinedlength; a length of right and left edges of each of the two cloth pieceson front and rear sides is shorter than a determined length; the twocloth pieces on front and rear sides have opposed edges to be joined,each edge expanding in a convex form; and the two cloth pieces on frontand rear sides are joined by sewing at their edges expanding in a convexform.
 23. The garment according to claim 20, wherein a stretch tape ismounted on the right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece.24. The garment according to claim 20, wherein: at least one of athickness and a knitted or woven density of an elastic fiber yarn in aknitted or woven fabric forming the second crotch cloth piece areincreased in vicinities of the right and left edges or in vicinities ofright and left edges and in vicinity of the longitudinal center line ofthe second crotch cloth piece and thereby a straining force invicinities of and in directions along the right and left edges of thesecond crotch cloth piece, or a straining force in vicinities of and indirections along the right and left edges and a straining force invicinity of and in a direction along the longitudinal center line of thesecond crotch cloth piece are increased further.
 25. The garmentaccording to claim 20, wherein both the crotch cloth piece of thegarment main body and the second crotch cloth piece are made of a wovenor knitted fabric that is not waterproofed.
 26. The garment according toclaim 20, wherein the second crotch cloth piece is made of a knittedfabric selected from a raschel knitted fabric and a tricot knittedfabric that are not waterproofed.
 27. The garment according to claim 20,wherein a cross section of the second crotch cloth piece in widthdirection when the garment is in use has an approximate W-shape suchthat vicinities of the right and left edges and the longitudinal centerline of the second crotch cloth piece rise toward a body of a wearer.28. The garment according to claim 20, wherein the absorbent article isa sanitary napkin.
 29. The garment according to claim 20, wherein thegarment is selected from the group consisting of a short panty, agirdle, a bodysuit and a leotard.
 30. The garment according to claim 8,wherein a length of the right and left edges and a length of thelongitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece are eachshorter than a determined length, and the second crotch cloth piece ismounted to the garment main body while stretching the right and leftedges and the center line of the second crotch cloth piece.
 31. Thegarment according to claim 30, wherein a stretch tape is mounted on theright and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece.
 32. The garmentaccording to claim 30, wherein a thickness and/or a knitted or wovendensity of an elastic fiber yarn in a knitted or woven fabric formingthe second crotch cloth piece are increased either in vicinities of theright and left edges, or in vicinities of the right and left edges andin vicinity of the longitudinal center line of the second crotch clothpiece, and thereby a straining force either in vicinities of and indirections along the right and left edges of the second crotch clothpiece, or in vicinities of and in directions along the right and leftedges and in vicinity of and in a direction along the longitudinalcenter line of the second crotch cloth piece are increased further. 33.The garment according to claim 8, wherein a stretch tape is mounted onthe right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece.
 34. Thegarment according to claim 8, wherein: at least one of a thickness and aknitted or woven density of an elastic fiber yarn in a knitted or wovenfabric forming the second crotch cloth piece are increased in vicinitiesof the right and left edges or in vicinities of right and left edges andin vicinity of the longitudinal center line of the second crotch clothpiece and thereby a straining force in vicinities of and in directionsalong the right and left edges of the second crotch cloth piece, or astraining force in vicinities of and in directions along the right andleft edges and a straining force in vicinity of and in a direction alongthe longitudinal center line of the second crotch cloth piece areincreased further.
 35. The garment according to claim 8, wherein boththe crotch cloth piece of the garment main body and the second crotchcloth piece are made of a woven or knitted fabric that is notwaterproofed.
 36. The garment according to claim 8, wherein the secondcrotch cloth piece is made of a knitted fabric selected from a raschelknitted fabric and a tricot knitted fabric that are not waterproofed.37. The garment according to claim 8, wherein the absorbent article is asanitary napkin.
 38. The garment according to claim 8, wherein thegarment is selected from the group consisting of a short panty, agirdle, a bodysuit and a leotard.